Good books for young readers.
Alex said:
I'm not sure what saving merits there are to Lord of the Flies. It is miserable, depressing, and really no inspiration for someone who is being bullied.
Isn't it funny how school teachers and libraries will push insanely depressing and disturbing books onto their hapless young students?
One of the stories which was read loud to us in primary school was a about a boy who was bullied into climbing a high smoke stack, and fell down.
Another one was about two boys who heard about bacteria (they called them "batteries") and wanted to help a friend who had a wound on his leg, so he wouldn't die from infection. So they tied him down, gagged him, and sawed off his leg. Just lovely stories for kids.
9 comments:
Though they have the right books there, can you really consider The Owl and the Pussy Cat as a middle reader? And list it right next to "When the Wind Blows" a definite teen read?
They seem a little harsh on The Gruffalow.
It's interesting to see the Pythonesque Erik the Viking getting the praise it deserves.
I see the picture for Howls Moving Castle, but where is the description for this delightful Welsh coming of age story, and why is it not next to the comparable "Wee Free Men"? Ah found it (HMC), hidden by the advert that kinda pushed the text out of alignment with the title. Too much visual clutter.
I'm not sure what saving merits there are to Lord of the Flies. It is miserable, depressing, and really no inspiration for someone who is being bullied. You'll end up dead if you are abnormal. Great story...
No mention of the Rev W Awdry. No mention of Dav Pilkey. No Don Freeman.
I think I would make a couple of suggestions. For early readers add
--Don Freeman (A Rainbow of My Own, Corduroy, Norman The Doorman).
--Robert McClosky (Blueberries for Sal, Make Way for Ducklings)
--Mo Willems (Don't Let the Pigeon Drive The Bus, Knuffle Bunny)
Dav Pilkey (World War Won, Captain Underpants)
For Middle Readers
-- Alan Garner (Elidor, Wierdstone of Brasingamen)
-- Terry Pratchett (Bromeliad Trilogy -Truckers, Diggers, Wings)
-- John Christopher (The Tripods, The White Mountains)
--Jeff Smith (Bone)
Teen readers
-- Osamu Tezuka (Apollos song)
-- Joe Orton (Loot, Entertaining Mr Sloan)
--William Shakespear (Romeo & Juliet, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing)
--Ray Bradbury (Something Wicked this way comes, Fahrenheit 451)
--Orson Scott Card (Enders Game, Enders Shadow).
--HG Wells (The Time Machine, The Jilting of Jane)
I think the definitions of "middle readers" and "young readers" need to be made more clear. Sometimes its merely the language, not the themes or characters or events, that define a book as appropriate for a given age level. Or, at least, that's what the librarians and school-marms are trying to consider.
I recommend Russel Hoban's "Mouse and his Boy," and "The Island of the Blue Dolphins."
And I also think the business about "The Lord of the Flies" is a bit tricky. It has simple, straightforward language and an obvious thematic and symbolic structure -- "this means that; this means that; this means that" -- so it can work as something to teach in middle school. But yeah, Piggy gets killed for his "ass-mar." I had asthma. I guess I just didn't "get it" that these kids were going all wild and horrible. I read it as a cool adventure story and I was kind of sad when the boat came to take them away because that meant they wouldn't be able to play their little "Lost" or "Survivor" on the island game any more.
Guess I kinda didn't get the concept hunh ...
I notice I didn't say why I recommended those books or authors/illustrators. However, since parenting doesn't seem to be a top concern here, I guess I won't bother, unless someone has a specific question.
I guess I just didn't "get it" that these kids were going all wild and horrible. I read it as a cool adventure story and I was kind of sad when the boat came to take them away because that meant they wouldn't be able to play their little "Lost" or "Survivor" on the island game any more.
Yes, but that's because you're an idiot. What have you been told? You're not the intelligent, sophisticated, literate, capable, talented person you alone believe yourself to be.
I'm not sure what saving merits there are to Lord of the Flies. It is miserable, depressing, and really no inspiration for someone who is being bullied. You'll end up dead if you are abnormal. Great story...
Are you serious? It tells all but the most obtuse about the reality of human nature. Where do you get this idea that it should be inspiring for someone being bullied? To say that is to have missed the whole point of the book. I wouldn't want to put something truly heavyweight in your hands, you'd be lost.
I'm not sure what saving merits there are to Lord of the Flies. It is miserable, depressing, and really no inspiration for someone who is being bullied.
The point of the list was to show books that kids should read to enjoy reading. LotF is a commonly assigned Eng Lit book in high school. I contend that though well written, capable of creating vivid images and lasting thoughts, it is not for all, and not a story that endears you to the authors choice of content, something often more important at a more carefree age, then the deeper meaning, or stylistic merits.
It seems, from what I remember of the text, to be a swift decent into a harsh world of superstition and alpha male dominance from a wrecked plane load of evacuee public school (that is "private school" in American) boys.
The removal of parental supervision (or teachers in loco parentis) seems to be analogous to the world at war which is the silent backdrop to the book.
I did not think the book was written as an inspiration to anyone, more of a cautionary tale about how thin the shroud of society is upon our shoulders. How soon would we be worshiping deities like the boars head after convention (M.A.D.) has failed us?
I was among those who identified with piggy. Not obese, but not athletic, bespectacled and asthmatic. To see that such a person will soon fail in the world, as much as they "failed" at school was a depressing thought, and though Piggy was a decent chap, it shows that there is no room for decent chaps, they are a luxury, not a necessity.
This is a blog site discussing everything, not an Eng Lit or sociology site, so I think my original comment was justified in that context. Apologies to Mr Golding for my glib comment.
"Another one was about two boys who heard about bacteria (they called them "batteries") and wanted to help a friend who had a wound on his leg, so he wouldn't die from infection. So they tied him down, gagged him, and sawed off his leg. Just lovely stories for kids."
Wow. How old were you during this? I'm pretty sure an American teacher could get fired for that sort of thing.
For what it's worth, the only book that I'd recommend as required reading for anyone is 1984.
I'm not sure, but since it was read aloud to us, I don't imagine we were older than ten or eleven.
Later as an adult I saw the same book presented proudly as a selected book on a display shelf in a children's library.
Although I did like Lord of the Flies it does seem like an easy choice for lazy English teachers, since it does lend itself to the kind of dissection they like to do in high school. It's not that challenging for either teacher or student, so it's perfect. Some of the "symbolic structure" shit I thought was pretty heavy-handed. Like being beaten over the head with a 16-pound sledgehammer. I can't say it would make my top 100.
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